Current Problems of the Philippines on Teacher Education By Reynaldo R. Ibasco As is often the case, problems usually are intertwined.

There may be a number of problems on the countrys teacher education that can be cited but I believe that all these are interrelated. The problems include deteriorating quality of teacher training and preparation; oversupply of unneeded elementary education graduates and undersupply of needed secondary education graduates especially in math and science; unresponsive curriculum; inadequate qualified tertiary and post-tertiary teachers; lack of facilities and infrastructure needed to implement needed changes and improvements; and the lack of political will to effect the needed changes.

Deteriorating Quality of Teacher Training and Preparation The dismal performance of the Philippines in the TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) assessment indicates the ill-preparedness of our students in both elementary and high school levels to handle math and science questions. In the 2003 TIMSS the Philippines ranked 34th out of 38 countries in HS II Math and 43rd out of 46 countries in HS II Science; for grade 4, the Philippines ranked 23rd out of 25 participating countries in both Math and Science. In 2008, even with only the science high schools participating in the Advanced Mathematics category, the Philippines was ranked lowest (see Appendix 1).This is in part due to the quality of instruction which puts in question the competence of teachers to provide quality instruction which may in turn be traced back to the quality of teacher training and preparation teachers get during pre-service days. There are definitely other factors that influenced the performance of our students in TIMSS but many agree that teacher factor played the more significant role.

There is also the observation that the number of graduates who pass the LET is low. For instance, in a four year period, 2001 to 2004, the number of LET specialization examinees totaled about 75,000 (DOST-SEI Market Study in S&M Education, 2005). Of these about 32,000 failed. To make matters worse, about 25,000 of the examinees were repeaters. These numbers cast serious doubt about the readiness of education graduates to teach (and perhaps even some of those who are already teaching. It is a common practice for graduates to be teaching already before they take the LET).

The 2009 Grade 6 and Y2 National average NAT scores, though showed improvement, are still below the target goal of 75; certainly way below real mastery level (NETRC, DepEd, 2009). The Grade 6 scores were 68.76% in math, 62.14% in English and 59.63% in Science. The Y2 scores were 39.53% in Math, 57.37% in English and 43.40% in Science. The Y2 scores are lower than the previous year.

To address the problem of deteriorating quality of education, the current curriculum for teacher education needs to be revisited. This requires an agreement between so-called teacher education stakeholders CHED, DepEd, PRC, HEIs or TEIs, business and other govt entities, even the teachers themselves, of what should constitute the framework of teacher education that will be most responsive to the current realities and dynamic enough to accommodate future realities. Such a unified framework should be reflected onto a basic curriculum to be used by all TEIs. A major focus of curriculum revision is in the S/M content area. The poor performance of students in TIMSS and NAT and then of LET examinees in science and math items should be a wake-up call to deepen the S/M content of the current curriculum, that is, add more corresponding

advance S/M topics that will equip teachers in their chosen major. The move to increase the number of specialization units to 60 for BEED and BSED in the NESC and NSEC is a good start. However, the need is not just breadth but also depth like the example of well-performing countries such as Singapore, Japan and Korea. There are TEIs in our country which cover so many units of Math (more than 40 units; see Appendix 1) but much of these is still in the level of high school math; at best these only get students to the beginnings of Calculus (even science high schools and many private high school already cover these). Korean math education curriculum for example covers more than 50 units of math that includes advance topics such as differential equations, topology and complex analysis. Their PKC even cover specific theories of math education (Mathematics Teacher Education in Korea, Oh Nam Kwon). Singaporean secondary science (chemistry) education covers 39 units of chemistry that includes advance topics such as Spectroscopy, Advanced Organic and Physical Chemistry. Looking at their curriculum makes you think you are looking at a pure science and math major curriculum. Their teachers are really prepared (content-wise) and trained (pedagogically) to teach science and math resulting in high achievement of their students. Some of the top universities in our country are already making headways by including advance math and science courses in their education curriculum (see Appendix 1) but even these may need to be improved some more to be at par with those of the well-performing countries. Such changes will also necessitate revising the math and science curriculum of the secondary level to give the necessary background to students who wish to pursue education. Needless to say, there is also a need to review the elementary math and science curriculum with regards to S/M content. These are not easy tasks considering the bureaucratic, economic and political hurdles to overcome.

Besides the S/M content, the current curriculum could use enhancing the pedagogic content especially in the area of assessments. Most TEIs have only 3 units even though the revised teachers curriculum specifies 6 units. This area needs to be emphasized because of the tendency of many teachers to use traditional assessment and not much of the authentic assessments and assessment for learning strategies. The lack of development of the critical thinking skills of our students may be traced to the kind of assessment that is being employed of our teachers.

Curriculum does not only mean planned or intended curriculum. The implemented curriculum should be such that these future teachers get quality instruction from quality professors who touch the head, hands and heart of their students. This may sound idealistic but unless this happens then the change and improvement we seek as a country will never happen. The future teachers we will produce will simply pass on and proliferate the manner by which they were taught and trained. All the good stuff they heard and read about will just be figments of their imagination because they never experienced or seen it themselves. For instance, if we desire these future teachers to teach their students higher order thinking, then they also need to be taught and trained to think critically. A practical way to ensure this is for HEI and TEI heads and administrators to emphasize this in their regular forums, conferences and similar meetings in the hope that this cascades down to the respective institutions and to individual teacher teaching education students.

Another area to look into in order to address the deteriorating quality of teacher education is the streamlining of the number of TEIs in our country. One figure puts the number of TEIs in our country at over 500 excluding over a thousand other tertiary institutions that offer teacher training programs. Top performing countries in the TIMSS dont have as many. Dr. Milagros Ibe

(Higher Education Reform: Now or Never, 1994) points out that no country, not even those with population five times as the Philippines would have over 500 TEIs. Although there is a need to ensure access of education to all populace, this should be balanced by ensuring quality as well. In the case of the current number of TEIs, there is room to weed out those that are perennially not performing well in the LET while giving incentives to those that are performing well in the form of scholarships, subsidies and due recognition. Only deserving TEIs should be allowed to continue in order to ensure quality education. Along with the streamlining of the number of TEIs is the streamlining and monitoring of the education programs being offered. Only TEIs who are capable of offering math and science programs should be allowed to offer these programs. Right now, there is an oversupply of elementary education graduates and an undersupply of secondary education graduates especially in math and science areas. The government should do a better and more consistent job of implementing the policies and guidelines for TEIs. It should no longer tolerate and allow (one way of describing corruption) the proliferation of fly-by-night TEIs only out to make profits, churning out graduates who only end up becoming domestic helpers abroad because they cannot manage to get a teaching license even after several takes. If the government cannot even do this, it should not be pointing finger at teachers who toil daily teaching more than 50 kids (some up to 100) in substandard classrooms, making do with outdated and inadequate textbooks and barely above poverty line salary.

Another way to help address the low quality of teacher education is to give higher compensation to teachers. It is time the government to look seriously into this if we are to minimize the brain drain and loose many more world-class educators who are in search of greener pastures overseas. Teachers in countries such as Korea, Japan and even China are compensated higher

than the average civil servant. More importantly, teachers in these countries are afforded higher status, unlike here in our country where being a teacher is looked down upon. The expression, mag-titser ka na lang sends a very strong message to our consciousness as a nation. It is time teachers be viewed as playing a critical role in nation-building and be compensated much more to lift the morale of teachers and energize them to rediscover their passion and give their heart once more into teaching. Perhaps the prestige of the teaching profession wanting for a long time now can be regained.

A Lack of System-wide, Concerted Effort As they say, even the best plans are wasted if they are not implemented and implemented well. Many will probably agree that the problem besetting the country as far as education, and in particular, teacher education, has been discussed and analyzed for quite some time now. There is a need now to implement a system-wide, concerted effort to act on the many suggestions and solutions that have been presented by various sectors. The lack of such will and effort (a political will, some may call it) is as much a serious problem as the others mentioned above. There has been numerous initiatives and projects done by both government and private sectors to address the problem besetting our education; even our teacher education. However, if isolated implementation rather than concerted one were applied; if different stakeholders did their own little thing, noble as these may sound; if government and private entities worked independently then the changes we seek to see happen for the countrys teacher education will be more difficult to achieve. As has been mentioned above, there are stakeholders involved in teacher education who need to work in a concerted effort to effect the changes that will help elevate the quality of teacher education and thus help improve the competence of teachers and ultimately the quality of education in our country. To effect a system-wide and concerted solution, the national

government must make necessary executive decisions (such as a bill about the compensation for teachers), CHED and DepEd must exercise their mandate consistently and judiciously (such as weeding out fly-by-night TEIs and other tertiary schools and providing quality continuing inservice for teachers), private and business sectors partnering with CHED and DepEd to elevate the quality of teachers through scholarships, continuing education projects, improving the facilities ( e.g. libraries and science laboratories) and access to modern technology of various HEIs and TEIs, and even the religious sectors partnering with CHED and DepEd to integrate essential values into teacher education. All these point to a systemic solution to what may be considered a systemic problem. Herculean, Idealistic, too-complicated; perhaps, but if done will provide a long-term solution rather than the usual short-lived ones. References: 1. Kwon, O. (2004). Mathematics Teacher Education in Korea. The Korean Presentation at ICME-10. Copenhage, Denmark, July 6, 2004. 2. NETRC, Department of Education, 2009. 3. Milagros D. Ibe, Higher Education Reform: Now or Never, 1994. 4. TIMSS, 2003 and 2008 Report.

Appendix 1
De La Salle University Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education Major in Math College Algebra Trigonometry Mathematical Analysis 1 Mathematical Analysis 2 Mathematical Analysis 3 Mathematical Analysis 4 Numerical Analysis Advanced Calculus 1 Ordinary Differential Equation Plane Geometry Introduction to Statistics Linear Algebra Linear Programming Basic Concepts Computer Language 1 for Math Computer Language 2 for Math Introduction to Set Theory Modern Algebra Business Mathematics TOTAL 3 3 4 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 units units units units units units units units units units units units units units units units units units units Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education Major in Chemistry General Chemistry 2 (lec) General Chemistry 2 (lab) Analytical Chemistry 1 (lec) Analytical Chemistry 1 (lab) Instrumental Methods of Chemistry Instrumental Methods of Chemistry Organic Chemistry 1 (lec) Organic Chemistry 1 (lab) Organic Chemistry 2 (lec) Organic Chemistry (lab) Biochemistry 1 (lec) Biochemistry 1 (lab) Biochemistry 2 (lec) Biochemistry 2 (lab) Physical Chemistry 1 Physical Chemistry 2 Seminar in Chemistry Chemistry of the Environment TOTAL 3 1 3 2 3 2 3 1 3 3 3 1 3 1 3 3 1 3 units unit units units units units units unit units units units unit units unit units units unit units

61 units

45 units

National Teachers College Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education Major in Math

Basic Math 1 College Algebra Advanced College Algebra Plane/Sphere Trigo College Geometry Analytic Geometry Differential Calculus Integral Calculus Theory of Equation Fundamentals of Statistics Intro to Computer Prog. w/ lab Business Math 3 3 3 3 3 5 5 5 3 3 3 3

Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education Major in BioScience

Earth Science Botany 1 Natural Science Chemistry 1 Chemistry Zoology College Physics 1 College Physics 2 Ecology & Field Work Environment Science Bio-Chem. Lab Tech.

3 3 3 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 5

TOTAL

42 units

TOTAL

52 units